Abyss (Marvel vs. Capcom)
Abyss (アビス Abisu) is one of the four Capcom original characters as well as the main antagonist and final boss in Marvel vs. Capcom 2: New Age of Heroes. Backstory Abyss is a legendary creature, forgotten by time and believed to be just a fairy tale. Born in ancient times, in an era where magic prospered, Abyss is a forbidden weapon sealed away in an underground temple where it spent untold centuries in a deep sleep. When its resting place is disturbed, however, Abyss and its unparallel power begins to awake. Its rise releases hideous waves which mutates all marine life, and cursed winds blowing from the seas which kill any animal or plant life on land. Abyss is something akin to entropy incarnate, a fabled monstrosity that would bring the world back to primordial times, killing all life in the process. Abyss' true body or "core" is a large, hovering black orb with green lines of magical symbols running around it. It can create bodies by manipulating a green liquid substance around it, appearing in three distinct forms: *Form 1 - The Armor of Erosion (波蝕の鎧 Hashuku no Yoroi). Due to its current incomplete state, Abyss dons the "Armor of Erosion", a massive black suit of armor built by Abyss' creators in order to control its immense power. Abyss fills the armor with green liquid in order to control it, jutting two large green horns out of the top of the mask. Although the armor was made to restrict its power, Abyss still exerts an incredible amount of strength from within it. *Form 2 - The Guardian (守護者 Shugo-sha). A transitory form, Abyss creates it as a protection while it goes through the process to reach its final form, after being released from the constraints of the armor. The Guardian is a humanoid-shaped being made entirely of a green substance, capable of turning its hand into an arm cannon to attack relentlessly with flames and laser beams. The Guardian's body is only a fragment of Abyss, separate from its real self. *Final Form - The Abyss. Abyss takes this form after restoring its full powers. It appears in the form of a giant, four-legged demon made up of dripping red substance, displaying a sharp-toothed face which melts away to be replaced by a new one (or three), and large tentacle-like limbs. Now wielding god-like powers, Abyss proceeds with its ultimate goal: to devour all of existence, intent on returning it to the primordial sea from where it originated, the "Sea of Genesis" (はじまりの海 Hajimari no Umi). This is demonstrated after losing the match, as Abyss will strike the downed character, launching them into the air and leaping at them to eat them whole, after which it licks its lips. While seeking a way to steal the "Armor of Erosion" for herself, Ruby Heart became involved in the crisis of Abyss' awakening. Unable to stop it alone, she then gathers a team of Marvel and Capcom characters and transports them to fight it on her airship. After defeating it, Abyss' core appears to destabilize and explode. During the ride back home on Ruby Heart's ship, she's seen contemplating the core, now palm-sized. Cracked and seemingly now useless to her, she cast it off her ship and it sinks into the waters below. Gameplay In order to accomodate the 3-on-3 tag system, Abyss presents itself with 3 phases to fight through, similar in gameplay to Onslaught's two phases in the previous game. Depending on the form, players have to adapt either an offensive or keep-away strategy to better fight Abyss. Abyss possesses Hyper Armor in all 3 forms, which means it can't be stunned out of its attacks. The 2nd and 3rd form can also move quickly by retreating into the ground, and spring attacks much faster and (3rd form only) from outside the screen. They are, however, weak to well-timed Hyper Combos depending on the speed and length of its many attacks. 1st Form - Armor of Erosion Abyss begins the battle by materializing the giant Armor of Erosion around its core form and fillng it with the green substance to move it. In this form, Abyss is extremely slow and can't jump or walk backwards, but it possesses several powerful moves and can't be stunned. Due to its slow movement, it can be attacked during most of its attacks if super-jumped behind. *'Glowing Spike:' Abyss swings his open glowing palm downward. If he is standing beside one of the pillars in the background, debris will be flung towards the player as a follow-up attack. *'Orbs of Erosion:' Abyss shoots 4 orbs with homing capabilities which electrocutes the player when unguarded. *'Trident Toss:' Abyss grabs one of its horns and tosses it down at the player in the shape of a trident. The splashing effect on the ground also causes damage. *'Charging Headcrush:' Abyss leans back and then charges foward with an aura of energy in front. This attack keeps on going until it stops, which leaves Abyss open for a long time if dodged by super-jumping behind it. *'Erosion Cannon:' Abyss covers its head and a wide and powerful laser cannon comes out from its stomach. This Hyper Combo covers the entire length of the screen, striking even small characters standing in close proximity to Abyss. As the attack above, it leaves Abyss vulnerable if super-jumped over. *'Erosion Hail:' Abyss raises its arm and a hail of liquid spears falls right where the player is positioned, even during a super jump. This Hyper Combo is similar to Storm's Hail Storm, but is a lot faster. 2nd Form - Guardian After the first form is defeated, the armor falls down and part of the underground temple breaks apart. The armor and part of the temple are then absorbed into the green substance, which now covers the entire ground, and the 2nd form emerges from it. Abyss' Guardian form fights exclusively with ranged attacks, constantly shooting at the player while laughing. The best strategy to deal with it is to attack from afar with projectile attacks and Hyper Combos, or use small characters and duck in front of it, where most of its attacks will miss. *'Abyssal Flame:' Abyss shoots out a flame from its arm cannon. It has limited range, but it has a fast startup and inflicts decent damage. *'Piercing Beam:' Abyss shoots out a thin beam from its arm cannon that has better range and damage than the Abyssal Flame. Due to the beam's thinness, short players like Wolverine and Megaman can duck down and safely attack when close. If hit, this attack restores a full level of the Hyper Combo bar. *'Piercing Blast:' Abyss shoots out a large laser from its cannon, similar to Iron Man's Unibeam. This is its most powerful ranged attack, but shares the same benefits for the player than the Piercing Beam, restoring two full Hyper Combo levels when hit. *'Capturing Bubble:' Abyss melts and 3 green bubbles come out from the ground. Getting caught by a bubble causes the player to get stunned and stand defenseless for a short moment, allowing Abyss a chance to strike. This can be avoided by calling an assist attack, using projectile attacks or by performing a super jump. If caught, mash buttons to break the bubbles. *'Spinning Array:' Abyss twists its body and spins around, shooting laser beams five times in 5 directions. This Hyper Combo is similar to Doctor Doom's Photon Array. If the player gets trapped from behind or gets too close during this move, it can cause a lot of damage from being juggled by Abyss' spinning body. Like the Piercing Beam, short characters can duck down safely, but they must stand far from Abyss. Final Form - Abyss The 2nd form melts away after it is defeated, briefly morphing into the final form's visage before disappearing. The rest of the temple sinks into the ground and the substance turns red, and then Abyss emerges. This giant form almost fits the entire screen, and can similarly unleash powerful screen-filling attacks. Abyss now moves by melting away into the ground and reappering anywhere, even outside the player's screen. The actual target in the battle is Abyss' black core, which appears briefly every time the monster melts away. The core will move away and Abyss will sometimes use it to bait an attacker and strike them with one of its moves. Although fast and powerful, this form is also the most vulnerable to Hyper Combos and Crossover Combinations due to its size. *'Rising Wrath:' Abyss melts way and shoots out projectiles coming from the floor. This attack can be directed toward Abyss, away from Abyss or on the players current position. Although the core is fully exposed and vulnerable during this attack, one must be on the lookout to dodge/block Abyss' move while attacking it. *'Giant Bash:' Abyss smashes the floor with one of its limbs and a powerful pillar of energy comes out on impact. This can hit aerial attackers and players super jumping. *'Giant Abyssal Flame:' Abyss shoots out a flame from its mouth similar to Dhalsim's Yoga Flame, only much bigger and able to juggle players when caught by it. *'Abyssal Wrath:' Abyss leans foward and projectiles come out from its shoulders. Its damage is the same compared to the Rising Wrath, but this move can be linked with other special moves. *'Giant Leaping Bite:' Similar to Venom's Venom Fang, Abyss leaps forward with its maw fully open, and then disappears into the ground. It's one of his fastest moves, so it can catch unsuspecting players at times, especially after an Abyssal Wrath or Giant Bash. *'Hyper Abyssal Wrath:' A very damaging Hyper Combo where Abyss uses a longer version of the Abyssal Wrath. This Hyper Combo can be chained with other special moves to extend damage, making it extremely dangerous. Theme Songs Videos Trivia *Abyss is the only boss in the series to have never been playable in any of the many home console version following the original release. Followed by Ultron Sigma (and “their” secondary form Ultron Omega). *Abyss is the only boss characters who has no dialogue whatsoever, having no special intro quotes nor spoken lines outside grunts and the 2nd form's laugh. Gallery File:Abyss.gif Abyss_MVC2.jpg Category:Marvel vs. Capcom fighters Category:Male video game characters Category:Video game bosses Category:Fictional armor Category:Fictional centenarians Category:Fictional demons Category:Fictional prehistoric characters Category:Fictional amorphous creatures Category:Fictional mute characters Category:Fictional shapeshifters Category:Fictional immortals Category:Fictional elementals Category:Fictional characters who can manipulate fire Category:Fictional characters with superhuman strength Category:Fictional characters introduced in 2000